Continental Flex fuel sensor

[Bud]

Dear All,

How are you?

I want to connect on my Link Ecu the new model of sensor Flex fuel from Continental

It is this sensor:

http://www.conti-online.com/generator/www/de/en/continental/automotive/themes/passenger_cars/powertrain/sensors_actuators/sensors_actuators_en,tabNr=1.html

Is it working with Link ECU? how to do connect to ECU?

in advance thank you.

regards

ludovic

[Levon Luther]

I think your link is bad. Thankfully, I can totally help!! I JUST  got done doing this same install. Did you get yours with AN fittings on there??

This is my exact sensor

It works on my car flawlessly. I have an 04 STi. Used DI#3 for it.

I didn't feel like spending $70 dollars for the expansion connector when it should come with it for $1600 dollars, so I made my own 5V Rail.

If you have any questions with hook up, post on here, I check it every morning USA Eastern Time zone

[Scott]

Hi ludovic,

We have tested the continental sensor here, and the new PCLink 4.9.7 has some details in the help file on how to wire it up. If you look under PCLink Help > Wiring Information > Input Signal Wiring > Digital Input Wiring > Ethanol Content Sensor Wiring you will find instructions for both the continental and siemens sensors.

Scott

[Levon Luther]

Well shit. Can it still be used with the 5V pull up?

I just put all my interior back together and I have a 5V pull up similar to the Siemens setup. Keeping internal pull up off.I have shown ethanol values of 8% and 9% for American 93 ( supposed to contain up to 10% ethanol )

Do you think that this will work as is?

If not - I assume that you need to turn the pull up back on?

[Levon Luther]

I was just tinkering around and noticed that 'E85 Sensor' Changed to GM Seimens sensor, but no continental. I have a continental sensor hooked up like the GM and it is working fine, but would be nice if it was a check box.

V10 Subaru

Thanks!

[Patrick]

Scott, i wish i have read your post a few days ago as i have just finished wiring up my continental sensor as per siemans diagram with the external 2k2 pullup.

When using the continental sensor do you switch on the internal pull up? What is the configuration for this sensor, i noticed only the gm siemans is listed in pclink.

Cheers

Pat

[Levon Luther]

If you wire in the external pull up, you turn the internal off.

I  noticed the change too and kept it at GM.

[Patrick]

hey levon

I understand it will still work just curious now if it will give the same frequency output as a continental (with internal pullup) or even a gm sensor for that matter.

Cheers

Pat

[Levon Luther]

I dont know the answer to that question - though I know the sensor is also supposed to output fuel temperature too and mine is not reading correctly with that,I think the amplitude of the voltage spike is the the fuel temp and the frequency is the ethanol content (50-150hz) if I remember right.

My car is getting dynod tomorrow, should be close to 600 on E85 depending how much it is pushed

[Levon Luther]

Just reread the question, from what I've read is that the internal pull up is too stiff for the GM ethanol sensor, but apparently not for the Continental. Life would have been so much easier if they would have released that before I built a voltage regulator circuit for it!!

If I feel like it some day, all I would have to do to change it is cut the wire tapping into the digital input and snip it, then turn the pull up resistor on and be good to go.

[Patrick]

Make sure you post up your results and any more info you find out on the continental sensor.  Mine is going in soon as well, good luck!!

Cheers

Pat

[Patrick]

Can any of the link staff please shed a bit more light on this topic?

1. Will a continental sensor wired up with an external 2k2 give the same output result as a continental sensor using the  internal pullup resistor?

2.Is 'Gm siemans ethanol sensor' used in the configuration when defining the digital input? There is no predefined continental sensor in pclink.

Cheers

Pat

[Simon]

Hi Pat

1) Yes

2) Correct select the GM Siemens option.

[Patrick]

Thanks for your help simon

[Martin Hanbury]

Hey all,

Just a quick question on how to configure this sensor in PCLink when using the Zeitronix ECA? The sensor is the Continental (13577394) sensor, however I am using the sensor in conjunction with the ECA display unit, which converts the digital signal into a 5v analog signal.

I have wired the ethanol content output signal into the AN Volt 6 position on the XS loom, but there is no specific setting in PCLink. Do I simply use the Voltage 0-5V setting and that is it, or is there more to it?

Thanks a lot,

Martin.

[Martin Hanbury]

Thinking about it; could I alternatively run the digital output from the sensor to the ECA display, AND straight through to the digital input on the ECU? Rather than using the analog signal? I imagine this would give me both the ethanol and fuel temperature readings? As well as freeing up that last analog input.

[Martin Hanbury]

Ok so went ahead and wired it so the sensor output wire runs to the ECA kit, and I then spliced into that wire and pinned it into the DI5 position in the XS Loom. Then in PCLink I have selected the GM Siemens Ethanol Sensor option from the list. However, I can't get the ECU to read the same as the Zeitronix display. 

For example, the Zeitronix display shows the fuel temperature at a steady 11° Celsius and ethanol content at 1% (should be 0 but that's what the display shows). With the internal pull up turned OFF, the ecu reads fuel temp as 132° Celsius, so that obviously needs to be on. With the pull up resistor ON and the active edge set to 'RISING', the fuel temp reads 20°. With active edge set to 'FALLING' the fuel temp flickers between 16 and 17 degrees. But I can't get it to read the same as the display no matter what setting I use. Also the ethanol content in the ecu displays 0% no matter what. 

Any tips?

[Simon]

Its unusual that you find that the signal is closer with the pull up on. Generally the device (in this cas the ECA unit) will already have a pull up and as such the ECU will not use its internal one. If the sensor has two pullups acting on it generally this will cause incorrect readings.

I would try the sensor direct to the ECU with pullup on and see if the readings are closer.

My suspicion is that the two units are not happy interacting.

[Martin Hanbury]

Well my understanding is that with the way I have wired it, there won't be any interaction between the two units? I am not using the outputs from the ECA, as this converts the signal to analog. Instead I have the digital signal output from the sensor going to the ECA unit, and have spliced into that same wire to get the signal to the ECU. The analog output from the ECA unit is not connected anywhere. I've attached a quick drawing I did in paint to help explain. 

Would splicing into the signal wire have caused enough of a disturbance of the signal to upset the readings? I can try disconnecting the signal wire from the ECA, but then I will have no display to compare the ECU reading to?

[Martin Hanbury]

So I tried running the signal wire direct to the ECU, and I believe you may be correct Simon. With the display disconnected, the ECU would not get a signal from the sensor with the internal pull-up switched off. With the pull up on, the ECU gets a reading of 18 degrees.

Is there no way I can use the two units together? I don't have a free analog input for the ECU, so I need to use a digital input. But I want the display as well...

[Martin Hanbury]

Bah, further confusion!

I just tried disconnecting the ECU from the circuit, so the signal wire goes direct to the display unit. Like this, the display still reads 13 degrees celcius. So the two units are disagreeing on the reading, even when there is no interaction between the two. This has me thoroughly confused.

[Simon]

Could be a case the one or the other or both devices are out by a little bit. One reading a little low one a little high.

Would need to check with a third device to measure the temp.

[leonbmx]

Martin, were you able to figure it out?

I wired my ECA in the same fashion as yours, but my tuner told me to disconnect it, as he believed it was interfering. Like you, I really want to be able to have my cake and eat it too, as in, I spent a ton of money on the gauge, now I want it to work!

The only thing that I, potentially, did different than you, is that I actually hooked up the sensor to the ECU, similar to your setup, but then I spliced the ECA into the sensor wires, so both the sensor, as the ECA also use the same power and ground, which, in my case could have been the interference.

I am currently on a break in tune, so we decided to leave the flex sensor issue alone for now, but I'd like to find out what I did wrong though... it's not rocket science!

[Martin Hanbury]

Well I ended up deciding that there was no interference between the two. Both devices were consistent in their readings whether the other one was connected or not, ie. with the ECU connected and the Zeitronix display disconnected, the ECU read 18 degrees. With the ECA connected and the ECU not, the ECA still showed 11 degrees. I also used a multimeter to measure Kelvin resistance to measure the fuel temperature, and that told me the fuel was 13 degrees.  So I don't think there is actually any interaction, it is more a case of the configuration of both units being out. What is interesting is that both units agree on the ethanol percentage. I sat my sensor in a container of E85 that I picked up from my local servo, and both units read 82%. I tested the fuel using separation funnels to be 88% ethanol, so the configuration is out a little bit there too. But I find it interesting that the ethanol content configuration matches up, while the fuel temperature doesn't.

This is actually irrelevant in the end though. It doesn't actually matter what number the units spit out, the ECU doesn't care what the fuel temperature or exact ethanol content ACTUALLY is. What matters is the consistency, as the tune is set up so that the ECU works out what to do at a given fuel temperature or E%. So in both cases it should be totally fine to tune the car with both units connected.

In terms of using it as a gauge to monitor things, I think that will work too. Really a gauge is only ever reliable enough to be used to compare to what your car normally does. So if the gauge normally reads 27 degrees when driving around in traffic, it doesn't matter if the fuel is actually 20 degrees. If one day it all of a sudden says fuel temp is 50 degrees then you will know something is up and it's done it's job.

[JonoP]

So glad I found this thread. I have the exact same sensor - The ECA-2. I got the little hackers screen for the Ethanol readout.

I was not keen on connecting all of those inputs to the analogue inputs, so splice in and just use a digital input.